Quiz: Are You Living in the Past, Present or Future?

March 4, 2013 | By Rosetta |

When I reflect on where I am in my life at this point, I’m grateful that I can say I’m the happiest I’ve ever been. I feel good about the work I’m doing now and the lifestyle I get to live. But it’s when I regress to thinking about the past – those shoulda, woulda, coulda’s start plaguing my mind. It’s in those moments of regret that I begin to forget about all the accomplishments I’ve had since then and how many more I will experience in the years to come. On the flip side, when I look too far out into the future, I get overwhelmed with everything I need to do to manifest my long-term vision. I end up losing sight of how wonderful my life already is.

Where do you spend your own mental time? Is your thinking usually focused on past experiences, present opportunities or future improvements?

Take this quick quiz to help you think about where your mind dwells on a regular basis.

You might be living in the past if:

You constantly talk about all the great things you did in college…even though you graduated 10 years ago.

You often reminisce about how popular (or unpopular) you were in high school.

You still have a grudge against the girl who “stole” your boyfriend in the 8th grade.

You make decisions based on what you want to do with your life right now, not on what might happen if you meet your potential husband next month.

You intentionally spend money to enjoy valuable life experiences, instead of saving every dollar of your income for retirement or a “rainy day.”

The truth is, we all spend mental energy in each of these three timeframes. The key is to be honest about when we find ourselves dwelling too much in one domain to the point where it hinders our overall well-being and progress. This brief quiz hopefully got you thinking about your own mental habits and how you might adjust your mindset to be more productive.

All I know is that for me, I definitely feel much happier when I commit to living in the present than when I focus too much on the past or the future.

When you look at your own time, do you spend the majority of it living in the past, present or future? What ratio do you think is most useful to your own happiness and personal growth?

Comments

About Rosetta

Rosetta Thurman is a nationally-recognized author, speaker, mentor and coach dedicated to helping women create their ideal lives. She is the creator of 31 Days to Reset Your Life: A Practical Guide to Personal Transformation and the founder of HappyBlackWoman.com, a supportive community for women all over the world. Learn more about Rosetta here.

Comments & Feedback:

I’m a college student and the atmosphere here is perpetually about the future. Why else do we take terrible classes, study over the weekends, and want nothing more than to sleep past 9am? For the prosperous future we’re creating for ourselves, of course ;)

Love the idea of keeping a gratitude list! One of the exercises in the 31 Day Reset is to keep a gratitude log for one day. Can definitely open your eyes to all the good stuff that’s in front of you right now.

Alrighty then! I was doing okay until I got to the part where I was pinning items on pinterest! I’m definitely not living in the past but not fully being present where I am to enjoy the moment. This was a good reminder to be alert to be actively pursuing each day with meaning.

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